There are many stereotypes associated with being vegan, covering all areas of life, though most tend to focus on food. Despite the fact that vegan food can be some of the most colourful, flavoursome and delicious around, some people still believe in tired old tropes about hummus, lentils and falafel. Or even if they don’t believe them, they like to spread them nonetheless, believing they are sharing the world’s greatest joke.
Lentils are one of the healthiest ingredients around and it is hard to beat a fresh, crisp falafel, silky-smooth hummus and a pillowy flatbread, with a great herby salad and a few crunchy pickles. But there is a lot more to vegan food than that and in February 2025, Plates London became the first vegan restaurant in the UK to be awarded a Michelin star.
This sort of food isn’t for everyone and there are many people who would prefer the aforementioned Middle Eastern vegan classic to the type of fayre generally offered at a fine-dining, starred establishment. Nonetheless, the award of a Michelin star is the aim of many of the best restaurants in the UK and indeed the world. Whilst we’re dealing in tired old clichés, for the sake of simplicity, let us say that a Michelin star is the restaurant industry’s equivalent of an Oscar.
Not a World First
What Plates London has achieved is massive and will get foodie vegans – which is not an oxymoron as some wags might like to say – very, very excited. However, it is far from the first vegan restaurant to be recognised by the French tiremakers. The guide, which has been criticized for being Franco-centric, gave a vegan restaurant in France a star back in 2021.
ONA, standing for Origine Non-Animale, made history, becoming France’s first Michelin-starred vegan restaurant. That was some achievement given the nation’s love of meat – all sorts of meat – and the owners of ONA, near Bordeaux, were right to be very, very proud.
The team at Plates London will still be feeling that same warm glow and will no doubt be benefitting from a spike in bookings too. At a time when the whole hospitality industry is struggling, such recognition will make a big difference. It will, of course, make getting a table there rather tricky, so good luck if you want to go.
What to Expect
The UK’s first vegan Michelin-starred establishment is situated on Old Street and is run by a brother-and-sister team, Kirk and Keeley Haworth. The former is the head chef and has worked at various high-end restaurants including The French Laundry, Sat Bains and Northcote. If the name sounds familiar, father Nigel is the man behind Northcote, itself a longstanding holder of its own Michelin star.
Kirk decided to “explore a plant-based diet in pursuit of health” and he now combines that lifestyle choice with his vast skill and experience to create some of the best vegan food you will find anywhere. Kirk and the restaurant may be familiar to anyone who watched TV show The Great British Menu, as he has competed on it several times. In 2024 he managed to win the Champion of Champions accolade and many of the dishes he cooked on the programme can be eaten in the restaurant.
Tasting Menu
There are two tasting menus available, one priced at £75 and another at £90. For this standard of food that is very reasonable and you can expect delights, such as:
- Barbecued Maitake mushroom, black bean mole, kimchi, aioli & puffed rice
- Slow cooked leeks, chestnut cream, jalapeño & gooseberry dressing, frozen verjus
- Mint ice cream, chewy beets, sweet pea & kombu
Incredible as Kirk and Keeley’s achievement is, they have some way to go before they catch up with Eleven Madison Park. If one Michelin star is like an Oscar, then three, the highest possible award, is like winning Best Film and Best Director, and that is the standard at this New York institution.
It was formerly a restaurant for omnivores but chef Daniel Humm announced it was going vegan in 2021. They now offer three fully plant-based tasting menus. The “Full Tasting Menu” will set you back a whopping $365, which makes £90 in London look like a steal!